Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Balance in science coverage, new health funds
Issue 143 July 22 - 28
In This Issue
BBC review
Give
less time to fringe views, BBC told
As the News
of the World phone hacking scandal raged on this week in the
UK, a major review of the BBC's handling of
science stories was released.
The review
led by geneticist Professor Steve Jones, was initiated in
the wake of the Climategate scandal of late 2009, after the
state broadcaster faced criticism for what some vocal
critics saw as a lack of robust reporting on climate
change.
The review looked specifically at a month's worth of BBC programmes broadcast in 2009 and 2010 and found that no significant factual inaccuracies were reported. However Professor Jones concluded that the Beeb's devotion to providing balance in its reports had led too often to fringe views being placed alongside those backed up with scientific evidence:
"When faced with strongly opposed views in a scientific discussion, a journalist may not be certain of the facts presented on each side and may apply balance while describing it as impartiality - but if one proponent is presenting dubious evidence that claim is not justified," he wrote.
"For at least three years, the climate change deniers have been marginal to the scientific debate, but somehow they continued to find a place on the airwaves."
The BBC was found to be heavily reliant on PR material when it came to science stories, with 75 per cent of them generated by press releases. Women were also under-represented both in the science reporting staff and in science stories themselves.
The BBC responded to the report by saying it will appoint a science editor to coordinate science coverage across the broadcaster.
Scientists approached by the UK SMC responded favourably to the review. One scientist, David Nutt, recalls in the Guardian how he has been pitted against journalists and activists on BBC programmes when asked to discuss scientific issues.
Does science snuff out alternative views?
One critic of the BBC review, who suggests science has become a "priesthood" where only the consensus view on issues is publicly promoted and alternative views discouraged, is Connie St. Louis, an award winning journalist and BBC contributor who leads City University's Masters in Science Journalism programme.
In a BBC
interview, St. Louis said the way society views science and
the way journalists "interrogate" science tends to reinforce
the consensus view being put forward.
"You
don't see politicians making statements without being
scrutinised, investigated and challenged. In science, whilst
there is dissent, very little of it is seen."
St. Louis recently featured on a panel at the World Conference of Science Journalists in Doha, Qatar which examined whether the Science Media Centres around the world downplayed the Fukushima nuclear disaster by issuing statements from nuclear scientists that suggested the impact of the reactor damage was limited.
The panel discussion, which also
featured input from the directors of SMCs in the UK,
Australia, Canada and Japan, is available as a podcast here and is worth a listen if
you are interested in learning more how the SMC network sees
itself fitting into the science media landscape.
HRC funding: $75 million dished out
The Health Research Council's latest funding
round has seen millions of dollars invested in new research
to improve Kiwis' health.
This week the Health Research Council
(HRC) announced the recipients of this year's funding - a
grand total of $74.56 million, divided among 52 separate
projects to be undertaken in universities, research
institutes and District Health Boards.
The Council is the Crown agency responsible for administering the New Zealand Government's investment in health research. Chief Executive Robin Olds was impressed by the quality of successful applications, stating:
"We are supporting some very exciting studies this year, which reflect the very high calibre of New Zealand health research."
"This year our investment will speed the development of new drugs that attack cancer cells and leave healthy cells unharmed, give new hope to those affected by neurological disorders and provide urgently needed data on how to ameliorate the human impact of natural disasters,""
The full list of funded
projects is available on the HRC website, and a round up of
media coverage can be found here.
Academics at
odds over de Freitas
The issue of academic
freedom and how far it should extend in allowing university
staff to put forward their views was the subject of a
Weekend Herald piece last week which examined the views of
"climate dissenter", the University of Auckland's Associate
Professor Chris de Freitas.
Dr de
Freitas
While de Freitas is well-known for questioning
the extent of anthropogenic climate change, the article
looked in particular at what he teaches his geography 101
students - and whether course materials present a skewed
picture of the state of scientists' knowledge about climate
change.
While colleagues of de Freitas interviewed by the Herald disagreed with his views on climate change, some backed his right to express those views, citing academic freedom. Others questioned whether allowing personal opinion to affect course content was appropriate for teachers of entry-level university papers, contending that this was not in keeping with responsibilities to students.
The debate spilled over into the letters pages of the Herald, attracting contributions from other scientists including UoA professor of geophysics, Geoff Austin who believes de Freitas was "villified" in the article.
"I hope students at universities continue to be presented with challenging ideas and not be required to regurgitate uncritically the conclusions of reports," wrote Austin.
However former associate professor of physics Robert White found that view "disturbing".
"The most disturbing aspect of [Austin's] letter is that
he does not refer to reports in the article that, if
correct, imply a lack of balance in how Dr de Freitas is
presenting material on climate change to students in some
courses at least. If correct, this needs addressing," wrote
White.
Quoted: New Zealand Herald
"The right to have individual views is something that's preserved because it is important - but there does come a point when you have to ask, 'should you be teaching that? Courses in universities and schools should not be personal opinion."
Prof Martin Manning, Victoria University
On the science
radar
X-Ray dogs , Southern Lights
side-on, manipulative make-up , miming to machines ,
bacterial grappling- hooks and lunatic lions.
SMC vacancy: closing soon!
The Science
Media Centre is seeking an experienced, news-savvy media
advisor to join our team for a fixed-term maternity cover
contract.
Join our small team dedicated
to working with journalists and scientists to improve media
coverage when science is in the headlines. You'll work in a
fast-paced environment where you are immersed in scientific
research and responding to breaking news stories - be they
natural disasters or medical research breakthroughs.
Click here for the full advert - the role is for
maternity cover starting from mid to late August.
Applications to the SMC by Wednesday July 27.
New from the SMC
SMC Doha
discussions - At the World Conference of Science
Journalists in Doha, Qatar, the representatives from SMCs
met to talk about how they perform their core functions.
The breakout conference session was based around one the
year's biggest science stories, the Fukushima nuclear
crisis. You can listen to the audio here.
In the News:
Chch Quake
odds - Paul Gorman, reporting for the the Press, quizzes
GNS Science on the most up-to-date odds of another strong
shake hitting quake-stricken Christchurch.
HRC funding announced - the Health Research Council (HRC) announced the the recipients of funding from the latest funding round. A grand total of $74.56 million was allocated to projects in universities, research institutes and District Health Boards.
Experts Respond:
BBC Science review - Key players in the UK
science sector respond to the results of a BBC review of
science coverage which suggests the a drive accuracy has
been sacrificed for impartiality in scientific
debate.
Sciblogs highlights
Some of the highlights from this week's posts include:
The inverse femtobarn - In discussing the Large
Hadron Collider, Marcus Wilson comes up against the
question: 'what is an inverse femtobarn?'
Physics
Stop
New Zealand's voyage of economic
self-discovery - Shaun Hendy charts a course to a better
financial future for all Kiwis through high tech
innovation.
A Measure of Science
Technology for
technology's sake, or is there something more? - Is the
iPad the new book of the modern classroom, or are we just
getting distracted by gadgets? Allison Campbell
investigates.
Bio Blog
Science has the real debate
- in preparation of a potential NZ tour by climate
skeptic Lord Monckton, Ken Perrott takes a moment to
separate scientific debate from 'talkfests'.
Open
Parachute
The transient teapot - Sagittarius (aka
the teapot) and surrounding Deep Sky Objects are subjected
to the astronomical scrutiny of Elf Eldridge.
Just So
Science
Research highlights
Please note: hyperlinks point, where possible, to the relevant abstract or paper.
Knights in shining
armour not so flash: A full suit of armour might offer
good protection in the medieval battlefield but it comes a
cost. A collaboration between New Zealand and UK researchers
has examined the energy requirements of sporting a suit of
plate armour and found that the weight placed heavy energy
demands on wearers when walking or running. Participants
wearing replica European armour used more energy than if
they were carrying the same weight in a
backpack.
Proceedings of the Royal Society B:
Biological Sciences
Pollinators waylaid by
farmland crops: Pollination of endangered trees may be
inhibited by the presence of agricultural crops. A new study
of pollen follow in Chilean forests shows that insects near
attractive farm crops will not move far, limiting the spread
of pollen. Meanwhile, resource-poor pine forests act as a
corridor to other areas as insects speed through them to
find better areas.
Current Biology
NZ
plant disease a tough survivor: The fungus-like pathogen
Phytophthora kernoviae is known to infect a variety of
plants, including Pinus radiata in New Zealand. New research
has shown that Kiwi and UK strains of the microbe can
survive in moist, nutrient-poor sand and produce viable
spores for up to a year at temperatures below 30 deg C. The
research has important implications for the control of
potential outbreaks.
New Zealand Journal of Forestry
Science
Ancient footprints trample
assumptions: Researchers have shown that footprints of a
human ancestor dating back 3.7 million years ago, show
features of the foot with more similarities to the gait of
modern humans than with the type of bipedal walking used by
chimpanzees, orang-utans and gorillas. Human-like bipedalism
was previously assumed to emerge around 1.9 million
years-ago.
Royal Society Interface
Picking
apart rock-paper-scissors: Is gesture choice in the game
of rock-paper-scissors entirely random? The results of a new
study suggest 'no'. When one player was blindfolded while
playing rock-paper-scissors the rate of draws - where both
players choose the same gesture - was above chance, and
higher than when both players were blindfolded. This
suggests that, even when it's against our best interests, we
can't fully resist 'automatic imitation'.
Proceedings
of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Manual breast milk expression: Expressing
breast milk by hand in the first days after birth is better
for boosting breastfeeding rates among poorly feeding
newborns than the use of a breast pump, according to new
study. The researchers undertook a randomized trial
comparing hand expression with breast pumping for mothers of
term newborns feeding poorly, and found that the former was
more effective at increasing breastfeeding
rates.
British Medical Journal
Policy
updates
Some of the highlights of this week's policy news:
Climate change negotiators
meeting -Tim Groser, Minister Responsible for
International Climate Change Negotiations, announced that
New Zealand will host a meeting of international
climate change negotiators in Auckland next week.
Further Chch areas 'Green Zoned' - Canterbury
Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee has announced
further areas of Christchurch that will be included in
the Green Zone rebuild area. The updates zone maps of
the city are available here.
Biosecurity agreements open NZ-China trade - Government-level agreements are paving the way for imports from China. New agreements on biosecurity standards will enable traders to take advantage of New Zealand's free-trade agreement with China, while at the same time keeping biosecurity risk offshore.
Climate change consultation - The Ministry for the Environment is seeking submissions on proposed changes to the Climate Change (Stationary Energy and Industrial Processes) Regulations 2009 and Climate Change (Other Removal Activities) Regulations 2009. The changes will impact the way energy products and emissions are monitored in New Zealand.
Upcoming
sci-tech events
How to Make Life
from the Primordial Soup - Royal Society Rutherford
Lecture, Prof Warren Tate - 26 July, Rotarua; 27 July,
Palmerston North; 28 July, Auckland.
Capturing Value Creating Profit - Hort NZ conference - 26-27 July, Rotarua.
Diet and Obesity: Down a Road Less Traveled - Lecture by Prof Mike Gibney -Auckland University Vice Chancellors lecture series - 28 Jul, Auckland.
Association of Women in Science - 2011 Conference - 28-29 July, Auckland.
For these and more
upcoming events, and more details about them, visit the
SMC's Events Calendar.
Science Media Centre NZ
Our aim is to promote accurate, evidence-based reporting on science and technology by helping the media work more closely with the scientific community.
The Science Media Centre is New Zealand's only trusted, independent source of information for the media on all issues related to science. Thousands of news stories providing context from and quoting New Zealand researchers have been published as a direct result of our work.
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